Defined Path

Kevin Kinder

10/21/2007

Defender Vince Harris had a bit of a detour in his path to the college ranks, but no matter how it works out he still has one school squarely in his sights.

Harris, who committed to West Virginia a year ago before falling a bit short on the academic side, is spending this fall at Harmony Christian in Cincinnati. He made another visit to WVU this past weekend, saw the results of some upgrades to the Mountaineers' facilities, and reconfirmed his plans after his tour of duty at Harmony.

"I've been to West Virginia before, but I saw all the new stuff and the locker rooms that they have redone," Harris said. "It was good."

Harris, who went to Harmony to achieve qualifying test scores, believes everything is looking good on the academic side, and thinks he will be able to enroll at West Virginia for the second semester, if a situation concerning the awarding of a scholarship for that period can be worked out. Details on that situation weren't clear, but even if it does not, Harris will simply bide his time a bit longer.

"They are waiting to hear about this scholarship issue, and if it works out I will plan to be there in January. But if it doesn't, I still plan on going there next summer," said Harris, who has held true to his commitment to West Virginia. "I talked to Coach Rodriguez on the visit, and he said he can't wait to get me here."

Harris, whose Harmony team has is 3-3 while playing college teams, including two Division I junior varsity squads, is a leader on defense.

"I'm starting at will linebacker and averaging eight tackles per game," Harris said. "I have two interceptions, and I took one of them back 33 yards for a touchdown against Marshall. We have one more game left, and then we have a combine at our school, where colleges come in to watch us.

"I think playing this year has helped me," Harris continued. "I didn't get to play much linebacker my senior year, and when I played it my junior year I was rushing almost every play. We played a 3-4, and unless we were in man-to-man coverage I was rushing all the time. I think I have gotten a lot better. Instead of sitting out, I am getting to play, and I fell like I am getting a lot smarter, too."

Harris' experience could land him at either linebacker or a safety spot at West Virginia. He stated no preference for playing either position.